


In the Land of Dreams

by unrequitedexistence



Category: Code Black (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-23
Updated: 2016-03-23
Packaged: 2018-05-28 14:46:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6333211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unrequitedexistence/pseuds/unrequitedexistence
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It has been one hell of a day. No one wants to be alone. Leanne invites Christa to stay over.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In the Land of Dreams

**Author's Note:**

> I ship Christa/Neal, but my dream ship is Leanne/Christa. It will probably never happen and that’s okay. In my head they are perfectly happy together. That’s why I had to write this. I woke up in the middle of the night with this in mind. So here it is. Please forgive typos and grammar mistakes. My English has seen better days. Enjoy!
> 
> P.S. This is also my first Code Black fanfiction. Might sound a bit OOC. I am sorry for that.

There are moments in life that make you question everything. While you run around busy dealing with their consequences you don’t realize how threateningly low your levels of hope are. Then you stop. Then you don’t want to be alone.

If you asked her, Dr. Leanne Rorish wouldn’t be able to tell you exactly for how long she had been on that shift. It _felt_ like she had walked into the hospital a week ago, perhaps a month if you took into account the stiffness of her muscles. It was utter madness, even for their typically beyond chaotic emergency room.

Fresh faces were starting to arrive so that the last shift, however long it had run for, could go home for a couple of hours. Twenty-four at least, they had been told. She wasn’t sure she was going to be able to stay away for so long, but she would gladly welcome some sleep in her own bed and a shower.

She changed before heading to the break room in search for some coffee. She needed at least to feel its scent, the thrill of possibility and adrenalin that the liquid offered her, before driving home. She was on the verge of exhaustion and she knew how the seats would whisper tales of comfort that would then tempt her eyes to close. She was certainly not going to give that a chance.

She was expecting it to be empty. She was always the one to _close_ the shift, to take one last look at things before giving away the key, always reticently, to whoever was meant to take over.

Christa Lorenson had her eyes closed and her hands wrapped around a cup of the liquid Leanne had been craving. She was sitting down, her legs crossed and a content smile on her face. Leanne decided to watch her for a moment. If she was on the verge of exhaustion, Christa seemed to be way past that. She didn’t look like she was about to fall apart though. There was a peacefulness to her that felt contagious. Leanne found herself letting out a breath she didn’t know she had been holding, her muscles instantly starting to relax.

“Still here?” Leanne asked having decided that being startled by a familiar voice would probably be better than having Christa jump at the sound of the coffee machine.

Watching Christa find her way back to reality was… amusing. She looked like a child that had just been awoken a second time after asking for another five minutes. There was an elegant laziness to her that made her movements feel languid. Her smile never left its place though. It was like she was living a dream. After all the pain, Leanne knew exactly how that felt.

“Excuse me?” Christa finally said as her eyes focused on the shape of the person in front of her, her voice still rough from her half-asleep state. “Oh. Hello Dr. Rorish.” She sat straighter, stretching slightly as reality claimed her.

“It’s after hours, Christa. It’s Leanne.” She looked down at the watch that decorated her wrist and sighed. “It’s way after hours, actually.”

Noticing that Leanne had just grabbed a cup, Christa abandoned her chair and made her way to her after setting her own on the table.

“Leanne,” She started tentatively, as if trying to decide if she liked the taste of the name on her tongue. “Let me.” She carried on, reaching for the empty cup. “I had the last one. I was going to make more after finishing mine, but I seem to have gotten a little… distracted.”

Leanne had little time to react, Christa having already stolen the cup from her hands.

“There’s no need.”

“I want to. Please, do sit down for a minute.”

Leanne knew there was no point in trying to change Christa’s mind so she simply nodded and sat down. She watched as the resident moved around, almost as if it were a dance. Her steps were methodical and careful. She was probably the reason why there was always a fresh pot of coffee. Once a mother…

“So why are you still here?”

“Everyone seemed to be in a hurry to leave. No one wanted to be alone after these past few…” She stopped midsentence and looked down at her watch. “Hours? So they paired up. Mario left with Malaya and Angus and mumbled something about me being more than welcome to join them at his place after feeding the cat.”

Christa rested the palms of her hands on the counter and stretched a bit more as she waited for the coffee to be ready.

“You have a cat?”

“Oh, apparently I do. I also must be around 105 to him.”

Christa’s nonchalant tone made Leanne laugh, which, in turn, made Christa spin around, slightly surprised to hear such sound leaving the body of her attending. It felt… _reassuring_. She smiled. Everything was going to be fine.

“With age comes wisdom, they say. I believe that scares him.”

“Scares me a little bit too.” Christa said as she placed the fresh cup in front of Leanne.

“Thank you.” Leanne inhaled the smell of caffeine, giving herself a moment to savor it before focusing her attention back on Christa, who was now sitting across from her. “Come with me.”

Christa raised an eyebrow questioningly, her mouth somewhat open in suspense as her brain processed Leanne’s offer and a possible reply.

“Oh no. Don’t worry. I think I am going to stay right here.”

She had been contemplating staying since she was told she could go home. She didn’t want the silence, not after such an intense day. She needed people, even if that meant carrying on working. The patients helped her as much, if not more, as she helped them.

“Christa.”

It was not out of pity, of that Christa was sure. Leanne was so reserved though. She didn’t want to impose on one of the rare moments her attending chose to go home.

“I don’t want to intrude.”

Leanne valued Christa’s honesty. Truth was, even though she was looking forward to her own bed, the silence that usually came with it wasn’t as welcome. So why not invite someone who was not full of pretenses? They wouldn’t have to tiptoe around each other’s susceptibilities. It could be a refreshing experience for both of them.

 “I am inviting you. I wouldn’t if I didn’t want to.”

Christa smiled at Leanne’s matter-of-fact tone.

“I know. Thank you.” She said as she took the last sip of her coffee that had long ago gone cold. “It’s particularly hard these days…” She added as she looked down at the empty cup.

Leanne sighed, finishing her own coffee before standing up and offering Christa a hand.

“I know.”

_CODE BLACK CODE BLACK CODE BLACK_

They took Leanne’s car, leaving Christa’s at the Hospital’s parking lot. Their next shift started at the same time so they had decided they would leave earlier so that Christa could go by her place to change. Also, Leanne felt more comfortable driving herself, which was beyond understandable.

Leanne’s house felt like _home_. It smelled of comfort, of life. Her family seemed to linger around. It was both heartening and heartbreaking. Christa wondered how Leanne did it. She had moved out of her old house as soon as humanly possible. There were too many memories. She had needed the space to reencounter with herself.

“Sit.” Leanne said as she led Christa from the hall to the living room. “Would you like something to eat?”

“Do you happen to have any popcorn?” Christa asked after a moment or two of silence.

Leanne raised an eyebrow curiously, a look of amusement taking over her face.

“I always have trouble sleeping after a day like this. I usually sit with popcorn and watch a movie to numb my brain.” She explained with a shrug.

“Sound like a plan.” Leanne dropped her bag down by the couch.

“You don’t have to. I just…”

“No, no.” Leanne said as she removed her shoes. “A distraction is more than welcome.” She smiled reassuringly before nodding towards the couch. “Make yourself at home and do find something for us to watch. I tend to spend more time watching trailers than actual movies.”

“What do you generally like?”

“To be honest I don’t remember the last movie I watched. Anything but cartoons?”

Christa sighed as she dropped her bag by the other side of the couch. “I have been avoiding those for a while. Still a little bit too much.” She removed her shoes, grabbed the remote and sat down.

“I will be right back.” Leanne said before making her way to the kitchen. She was sure she had some microwave popcorn somewhere. And perhaps some M&Ms? She liked adding them to the popcorn bowl.

She returned a couple of minutes later to find her cat on Christa’s lap. She was petting him as she went through what seemed to be an endless list of films.

“I see you have met Mufasa.”

“Mmmh?” She looked away from the TV for a moment, her eyes finding Leanne’s before coming to rest on Mufasa. “Oh. He didn’t seem very convinced when he first saw me. I think we are friends now though.”

“He’s usually afraid of strangers.” Leanne said as she sat down by Christa’s side. “He’s my son’s cat. Every time the bell rings I swear he expects him to come running back.” She put the bowl on the table before reaching out to pet Mufasa. “So what are we watching?”

“ _His Girl Friday_? Unless you don’t care for black and white comedies?”

“Fine with me.”

 _Definitely_ fine with her. She was more than happy to be able to watch something without having to go through the process of choosing it. Also, she was starting to enjoy being able to share some of her life without being pressured to go further.

“I just proved Mario right, didn’t I?” Christa asked as she selected the film and pressed play. “I am officially ancient.”

They both laughed and Mufasa pawed Christa’s arm as she had absentmindedly stopped petting him.

“Certainly, Sir. I apologize for the delay.” Christa said playfully as she resumed the petting.

Leanne leaned back on the couch, making herself comfortable before reaching for the bowl and bringing it to her lap. She found herself staring at Christa as she was about to offer her some of the popcorn/M&M mix. She seemed to exude serenity. It was rather endearing and absolutely soothing. Even Mufasa was less agitated.

“He really seems to like you.”

“I like him too.” Christa smiled before grabbing some popcorn with her free hand and focusing her attention on the TV. “Ooooh, chocolate.” She said distractedly as she carried on following the characters.

_CODE BLACK CODE BLACK CODE BLACK_

Once the movie was over, Christa turned a bit on the couch so that she could look at Leanne without applying too much pressure on her already tired neck. Mufasa complained, jumping off her lap and abandoning the room.

“He’s going for a nap.” Leanne explained, mirroring Christa’s earlier movements so that they were sitting across from each other.

“I like the way he thinks.” Christa said with a yawn, bringing her hand to cover her mouth.

“Sleep?” Leanne asked with a smile.

“Yes, please. Just give me a blanket? I can stay right here.”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” Leanne got up and stretched her back and arms. “If I promise not to bite, will you mind sharing? I don’t feel like bothering with looking for sheets for the guest room.”

“Funny. But really, I will be fine here.”

“You are ancient, remember? Your back wouldn’t like it.”

“Now that was mean.”

Leanne laughed as she made her way to her room, closely followed by Christa. Once inside, she went to her closet and grabbed a clean pair of shorts and a shirt for her to sleep in.

“The bathroom is across the hall.”

Christa was too tired to discuss the sleeping arrangements. As long as she had a place to lie down, she was okay with it.

Once they were both ready, they climbed into bed.

“I love beds.” Christa moaned as her back befriended Leanne’s mattress. “Leanne?”

 “Yes?”

“Thank you.” Christa said as she yawned once again. “And hey, nice touch with the M&Ms.”

“You’re welcome. Goodnight.”

_CODE BLACK CODE BLACK CODE BLACK_

Leanne woke up in the middle of the night feeling strangely comfortable. She needed to go to the bathroom but she didn’t feel like moving. There was warmth surrounding her and it felt like heaven. As she started regaining her senses she felt someone else’s body wrapped around her own. She was confused, on the verge of becoming slightly terrified, when she remembered having invited Christa over. She felt herself relax again.

Christa must have found her way to her during the night and was now spooning her, one of her hands having found its way under Leanne’s shirt, now resting right under the line of her breasts. Now that was a peculiar situation. As much as she was enjoying it and would love to deal with it once the alarm rang, she really needed to pee.

 “Christa.” She said softly. “Christa.” She repeated a little louder, rubbing her foot against Christa’s leg.

“Mmmmh?”

Leanne couldn’t help but smile at the sleepy response that came from somewhere close to her ear. She already had enough time to process the situation, but she had a feeling that Christa’s reaction wouldn’t be as composed – but certainly far more amusing.

“I need to use the bathroom.”

“Oh. Okay.” Christa said in a half-awake state, mechanically pulling Leanne closer to her. It took her more than a minute to realize what was happening. Leanne felt Christa’s arms tense up. “Oh God.” She almost jumped away from Leanne, whose body instantly complained about the void and lack of warmth. “Oh God, I am so sorry.” She said as she sat up.

“Don’t worry.”

“I am seriously sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

“It’s okay.” Leanne said as she got up.

“Dammit. I should really get a cat. Then I would have an excuse to avoid the world and further embarrassment.” Christa said as she rubbed her eyes. “ _I would love to but I can’t, I have to go home and feed my cat._ ”

Leanne shook her head in amusement and went to the bathroom. When she came back she found Christa lying close to the edge of the other side of the bed, her back turned towards her side.

“What are you doing?”

“Dying of embarrassment.”

Leanne got back into bed and gave it some thought before reaching out for Christa’s warmth. “It’s what I miss the most. The company.” She said as she pulled Christa to her chest. “Is this okay?”

“Yes.” Christa replied as her hand found Leanne’s on her skin. “I miss the _I love you_ s, the laughs, the noise… but the warmness of silence? It’s hard to breathe without it.”

“As long as you don’t steal the blankets, I am not going to sue. So relax, okay?”

“You’re hilarious.” Christa mumbled before letting her body relax against Leanne’s, sighing deeply once she felt comfortable enough to start dozing off.

Leanne smiled as she felt Christa falling asleep. Her head resting slightly above Christa’s ear, she inhaled the scent of her shampoo. She made a mental note to ask for the brand. It smelled of lavender.  

Human contact. Life. And it didn’t feel threatening to her memories.


End file.
